Who Is Greta Thunberg and Why Has She Been Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize?

Greta Thunberg, a 16 year-old from Sweden has started a student movement calling for climate change mitigation action which has won her a nomination for this year's Nobel Peace Prize.

Toronto, March 15: 16 year-old Greta Thunberg from Sweden has become the face of a student protest movement calling for climate change mitigation action. Her activism has won her the nomination for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize.

Thunberg was nominated by three Norwegian MPs who said, "We have proposed Greta Thunberg because if we do nothing to halt climate change, it will be the cause of wars, conflict and refugees," Norwegian Socialist MP Freddy Andre Ovstegard told AFP news agency. "Greta Thunberg has launched a mass movement which I see as a major contribution to peace," he added.

Greta began walking out of her classes every Friday since August last year to protest against the lack of action on climate change. She staged a protest outside the Swedish Parliament and began campaigning on social media under the hashtag #FridaysforFuture to demand that leaders enact climate change mitigation laws. Her movement has caught on in other European countries with school students staging protests in the UK, Germany, Belgium, France, Australia and Japan.

Greta was invited to speak at the World Economic Forum in Davos where she categorically told global leaders, "On climate change, we have to acknowledge that we have failed”.

Greta describes herself as "a 16-year-old climate activist with Asperger [syndrome]." If Thunberg is awarded the Nobel Prize she would become the youngest-ever awardee with Malala Yousufzai being 17 when she was awarded the Nobel Prize for her work to promote education for girls.